April 3, 2023, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Collegiate, Grand Rapids Community College’s student publication, earned 20 awards from the Michigan Community College Press Association, an organization supporting student journalists in the state. GRCC is one of nine community college in the organization, which is based at Central Michigan University and focuses on educating students about how journalism contributes to the preservation of democracy. Award winners are chosen by a group of judges, which, according to the MCCPA website are, “seasoned journalist professionals with years of experience in the field.” Collegiate honorees are: News Story– Third place, Kevin Lopez with contributions with Blace Carpenter, Brandon Smith, Kenzie Davis, Anane Badom, and Annabelle Guysi. First Amendment Reporting– Third place, Blace Carpenter with contributions from Shane Madden Serious Column– Third place, Alena Visnovsky. Humor Column– Second place, Braeden Pelton. Critical Review– Second place, Joseph Poulos; Third place, Abigail Mulonas. Sports News– First place, Alena Visnovsky; Third place, Pierson VanGorp. Sports Feature Story– First place, Pierson VanGorp. Editorial– First place, Shane Madden; second place, Sophie Deiters. Editorial Cartoon– First place, Abby Haywood. Original Comic– Entertainment– Third place, Abby Haywood. News Photo– First place, Elizabeth Halvorson. Photo Essay/ Digital Slideshow– Third place, Alena Visnovsky. Informational Graphic– Second place, Abby Haywood. Headline Writing– Honorable mention, Joseph Poulos. Multimedia Reporting– Third place, Blace Carpenter. Video Production/Online Audio Slideshow Production– First place, Sophie Deiters. News Website– Third place.

April 3, 2023, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - When Randall Dragstra completed his service with the United States Marine Corps, he wasn’t sure what he wanted to do next.  Start at Grand Rapids Community College and go anywhere. Every former student has a story to tell about how GRCC gave them the education and opportunity to be successful. Dragstra knew he wanted to start his higher education journey, but wasn’t sure what his goals were for the future. GRCC was an easy choice to complete his core classes as it was local and affordable. After completing his core classes, Dragstra received the Cascade Engineering Scholarship and began studying Manufacturing Engineering.  “Receiving a scholarship helped me tremendously with financial support that takes a burden off my economics at home, but also seeing someone willing to endorse me in that way gave me the stimulation to keep pushing and focusing on my education,” Dragstra said.  Dragstra recalls some of his most memorable moments at GRCC inside the classroom. He enjoyed connecting with students and learning together in a hands-on environment. One professor in particular, Scott Lampe, made a lasting impact on Dragstra.  “Professor Lampe made my experience at GRCC very meaningful. He has been a mentor to me, and is knowledgeable with advice for both inside and outside of the classroom,” Dragstra said.  Dragstra completed his degree by taking each step, and not worrying about the big picture. Every accomplishment, no matter how small, was something that he hadn’t done before. “Getting a good grade or using something I learned in a practical application outside of school were big accomplishments for me,” Dragstra said.  It paid off, too. Dragstra completed his degree in 2019 and has been working at Kent Manufacturing Company since. He is in the department of part development and validation, creating custom pressure sensitive adhesive parts and testing them to make sure they are correct for an application.   Dragstra shares that everyone has obstacles in their life. But he has put in the hard work and found the right people and resources to help overcome them. He just kept taking the next step. More information about the Manufacturing Programs can be found here.  Start your GRCC story today by clicking here .  

April 2, 2023, SHEPHERD, Mich. -- The Grand Rapids Community College baseball and softball teams won four of five games played at Mid Michigan College on Sunday, three in dominating fashion. Due to the inclement weather on Friday, the softball team was forced to play a triple header. The team lost the first game 7-4 despite pounding out nine hits. The team bounced back in the second and third game, 13-2 and 9-1, with Izzy Regner picking up both wins. In all, GRCC's softball team accumulated 36 hits over the three games and had just two errors in the final two games after five costly errors in the opener.  It batted .379 and slugged an impressive .653.  After missing the doubleheader due to sickness on Thursday, freshman catcher Samara Kolehouse was on fire, going seven-for-10 with seven runs batted in, including three home runs and two doubles that nearly went out of the ballpark as well.  Jaye Guichelaar also had seven hits on the day, batting .538 with two doubles. Alyssa Wierenga hit her first career home run in game three of the day, a three-run blast. Regner also hit a home run, her fourth of the season, and on the mound she gave up just two earned runs while striking out 22. GRCC is now 11-9 on the season and 3-4 in conference play. On the baseball diamond, GRCC and Mid Michigan had a pitchers’ duel in game one. But in the top of the seventh, the Raiders broke a 1-1 tie with two runs on three straight hits to put the visitors up 3-1. Mid Michigan led the bottom of the seventh off with a home run, but left the potential game-tying at third, as GRCC hung on for the 3-2 win. Lucas McKinney earned his team-best third win of the season, going six innings and giving up three hits while striking out five. GRCC got off to a 6-0 lead in the nightcap and cruised to a 17-3 victory, while totaling 15 hits and committing no errors. The highlight early in the game was a grand slam by center fielder Trevin Laming, his team-best fourth of the season.  Left fielder Aaron Bess blasted his first four bagger of the season, just one of three hits in the game. GRCC also got two hits from Fernando Rivera-Calderon, Tommy Reid, Jake Gumieny, and Joe Hoeks. Colton Leatherman allowed just two earned runs over six innings of work, while striking out six to pick up his second win of the season. GRCC is now 12-10 and 7-1 in the conference. The baseball team will be back on the diamond on Tuesday in a doubleheader at Davenport University. The softball team isn't scheduled to resume play until they make up their final two games of the Delta College series on April 7. This story was reported by Ben Brown.

March 31, 2023, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- The Grand Rapids Community College Communications team’s efforts to share the stories of students overcoming obstacles and the people who support them earned three Gold Paragons from a national community college communications organization on Friday. The 2020-2021 GRCC Foundation Annual Report earned the top award in the Annual Report category from the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations, an organization representing community colleges in the United States and Canada. The GRCC team also earned a Gold Paragon in the Logo category, for a design used to create a patch for students competing in the NASA HUNCH competition, and in the Novelty Advertising category for the “La Cerveza del Presidente” design, used on glasses at the GRCC Foundation’s Scholarfest honoring President Emeritus Juan R. Olivarez and Mary Olivarez. GRCC earned a Bronze Paragon in the Government or Community Relations Campaign category for its efforts to raise awareness of the Michigan Reconnect scholarship program. “Every day, we are inspired by GRCC students, and the faculty and staff members who educate and support them,” Communications Director Dave Murray said. “It’s an honor to tell their stories, and we hope they inspire others to start an educational journey that will change their lives.” The 2020-2021 Annual Report focused on people the foundation has helped and the lives it has transformed – shared by the people themselves, often telling their stories in their own words. Judges praised the report’s stories, photos, design, and graphics. “Grand Rapids’ annual report has a magazine-like quality in the way it communicates to its many groups the way the college is impacting students,” judges said. The annual report is a collaboration between the GRCC Foundation and Communications team, both part of the College Advancement team. It’s the third year in a row a GRCC Foundation Annual Report earned recognition. The 2018-2019 report earned a Gold Medallion from NCMPR’s District 3, and the 2019-2020 report earned a Gold Paragon and Best in Show, the organization’s highest honor. The drinking glass design was created for the GRCC Foundation’s Scholarfest fundraiser, honoring the Olivarezes for their service to the college and greater community. The glasses were used in conjunction with a special craft brew created by students in the Secchia Institute for Culinary Education. “Really nice work. Illustrations, especially of those we love, can be really difficult. This illustration is beautiful, and honestly deserves to be on much more than just a beer glass,” judges said. The award-winning NASA HUNCH logo is worn by GRCC culinary students heading to the Johnson Space Center in Houston on April 19 and 20 for competitions. One team is a finalist in the competition to send a meal to astronauts on the International Space Station and the other is a finalist with a design to create edible packing materials. “This is super fun. Nice work. I really like how the logo flows,” judges said. The Michigan Reconnect awareness campaign included student profiles that were highlighted by the state government and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, social media campaigns, outdoor advertising and other materials telling people about the program, which covers the cost of in-state tuition for residents age 25 and older. “I love to celebrate the outstanding work of our community college marketers,” said Jeff Ebbing, NCMPR’s 2022-23 president. “The creativity and hard work that went into the winning entries is on par with some of the best agencies in the country and is a testament to the talent and dedication of our members. These people are pros in every sense of the word.” The 2022 Paragon Awards drew 1,726 entries from 323 colleges across the country and was judged by more than 40 professionals from the marketing and public relations industry.  GRCC's three Gold Paragons were more than any other college in the nation.  NCMPR’s Paragon Awards recognize outstanding achievement in design and communication at community and technical colleges. It's the only national competition of its kind that honors excellence exclusively among marketing and public relations professionals at two-year colleges.  

March 31, 2023, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Doug Wiersma went to college after high school and quickly decided it was not the right place for him. But now, he spends his days at Grand Rapids Community College teaching students as they start down their own educational journeys, helping them gain in-demand skills.  Wiersma left college to work as an electrical apprentice. He worked his way through the electrical trade from a Journeyman’s to a Master’s License. Eventually he became an estimator and project manager specializing in electrical design-build projects.  Wiersma began teaching at GRCC as an adjunct professor in 1999. He never intended to work in higher education full time. However, colleague George Waite encouraged Wiersma to start a Construction Electrical Job Training program at GRCC.  Wiersma was won over, and soon discovered how much he enjoyed working with students and helping them reach their career goals. He teaches them through hands-on demonstrations and projects. Job Training programs are unique due to the amount of time instructors and students spend together. Wiersma spends eight-hour days, four days a week with his students, providing an opportunity for students to experience “life in their trade” first hand.  Some of Wiersma’s most memorable moments as an instructor involve watching students discover their passions and grow through the electrical trade.  Wiersma recalls one specific student who came into Job Training frustrated and lost. The student was married, had some life experience, and was looking for an opportunity to change the direction his life was going. Upon graduating he was offered an apprenticeship with a major company.  Wiersma ran into this student over five years later while sitting at the Gerald R. Ford Airport. He heard someone call his name, and when he turned around the student was there with his wife, two daughters, and a new Disney t-shirt. The family was returning from a vacation in Orlando. “I barely recognized him,” Wiersma said, “His whole face had changed from despondent and lifeless, to cheerful and confident. He went on to introduce me to his family and talk about how much he enjoyed his career as a Journeyman and project manager.” Moments like this encourage Wiersma to continue to invest in the students in the Job Training program. Many students coming into the program are unsure what direction their career will take. Wiersma encourages students to work hard and make sure they enjoy what they are doing.  Current student Ben Mast said, “I feel like most of the students don’t have any experience when they started. I’m super grateful to have Doug as my instructor. He is super knowledgeable. He’s got an answer for everything and he also makes it super fun!”    

March 30, 2023, SHEPHERD, Mich. -- The Grand Rapids Community College baseball and softball teams bounced back from game one losses to Mid Michigan College by combining to score 33 runs in victories of second games of doubleheaders on Thursday. The softball team’s opener was a pitcher's duel, with both aces combining for 24 strikeouts. GRCC lost 5-1, with just one of those runs being earned. Pitcher Izzy Regner took the tough loss. Mid Michigan built a 9-3 lead after three innings in the nightcap, but GRCC exploded for nine runs on 11 hits in the top of the fourth inning.  That inning included a three-run blast by Lauren James, her second home run of the season. GRCC tacked on eight more runs in the sixth inning enroute to a 20-10 victory. All nine GRCC players had at least one hit, with Jaye Guichelaar, James, Brittany Cisler, and Maci Huver all with three hits.  Huver and James each had four runs batted in.  Vanessa Hewitt hit her first collegiate homer and drove in three runs. The baseball team mustered just three hits and dropped a 3-2 decision in the first game, with Jared Berkenpas getting the loss. But the team bounced back to win the nightcap 13-7. GRCC totaled 14 hits from eight players. Luke Huerta and Trevin Laming each had three hits and Aaron Bess led the team with four RBI. Connor Foley picked up the victory, his third win of the season, pitching five innings and striking out eight batters. Both teams are scheduled to resume play Friday at 1 p.m. and finish the series out on Sunday.   This story was reported by Ben Brown.

March 29, 2023, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. –  Jared Berkenpas and Zacarias Salinas of the Grand Rapids Community College baseball team were named Michigan Community College Athletic Association Northern Conference Players of the Week after helping the team sweep its first conference opponent of the season. "Jerad has been pitching with great confidence and pounds the strike zone," head coach Mike Eddington said. "He gives our team great confidence when he pitches." Berkenpas earned his second win of the season, shutting out Delta College on Friday. He allowed just two base hits and struck out 12 while walking none. Berkenpas, who earned NJCAA All-American honors last year, is now 2-0 with a 1.29 ERA. Opponents are batting just .148 against him. "After the offseason Z had, I don't think anyone is surprised by his performance to start the season," said assistant coach and former teammate Brady Owen. In seven games last week, Salinas, a sophomore from Canton, Mich. went 9-for-20, including four doubles and his second home run of the season. The outfielder and first baseman has played and started in 18 of GRCC's games and leads the team with 21 hits and is second on the team with a .412 batting average, an OPS of 1.714, four doubles and two home runs. The baseball team is now 9-9 overall after starting the season 2-8 in a tough spring break down south. GRCC is scheduled to resume conference play next at Mid Michigan College on Thursday at 2 p.m. This story was reported by Ben Brown.

March 29, 2023, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Grand Rapids Community College on Wednesday honored four women whose dedication and talent have inspired and empowered those around them. The 2023 Salute to Women Awards honored Maria McKee, Melissa Gheorghiu, Senita Lenear and Peni Weninger during ceremonies on Wednesday at Sneden Hall on GRCC’s DeVos Campus. The event, conducted by annually during Women's History Month, honors four women within GRCC's community for personal and professional excellence and for serving as role models and mentors to other women. The event is coordinated by the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. This year’s honorees are: McKee, who has worked at GRCC for just over three years, first as a tutor at the Lakeshore Campus, IRW Lab, and Early Middle College sites. Maria became the interim Language Arts Tutorial Lab coordinator. Maria studied writing with a poetry focus at GVSU and soon graduates from the Michigan State University College of Education with a master’s degree in Higher, Adult, and Lifelong Education.    Gheorghiu, who is a single mother of three who returned to education after 20 years away, and has been tremendously successful. She co-organized a clothing drive for students in need as part of an Honors Program project, is a member of Psi Beta Honors Society; TRIO student support program for first generation students, and is a chapter officer for GRCC’s Alpha Upsilon Kappa chapter. Melissa is a semifinalist for the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship, and is the recipient of the Phi Theta Kappa All State Academic Team for GRCC. She is also the recipient of this year's Brian Kloet Campus Involvement Award. Melissa has been accepted at University of Michigan.   Lenear, who was elected as the Third Ward City Commissioner, takin office in January 2014. Her extensive service includes serving as chairwoman of the Mayor's Safe Alliance for Everyone Task Force, which developed a violence-reduction strategy. She also served on the Great Housing Strategies committee, which provided recommendations for addressing our community's housing needs. Additionally, she served on the Kent County's Friend of the Court and Lead Task Forces; both were designed to research and make recommendations that positively impacted the community and elevated the services being provided. Commissioner Lenear has more than 25 years of business experience, which includes a variety of leadership positions at the largest healthcare insurance provider in the state of Michigan and co-owning an event planning and business consulting firm.   Weninger, who started at GRCC in 2004 as a support staff member in the Instructional Support Department Interdisciplinary Studies Department, where she planned faculty and adjunct faculty learning days, retreats and coordinated professional development classes and events. Her last role was on the Human Resources team, where she managed intake, applications, and arranged interviews. She retired in 2017 and continues her involvement in the college community, serving on the Golden Raider Retirees’ Gold Team.

March 29, 2023, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. —  From building motorized LEGO creations to watching robots in action, Western Michigan University-Grand Rapids, Autocam Medical and Grand Rapids Community College are is opening the doors to exploration for future scientists. The second annual AMP Lab Family Open House event is planned for Saturday, April 8, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the AMP Lab @ WMU, located at 200 Ionia Ave. SW in downtown Grand Rapids. This free event encourages children ages 5-12 to explore the world of STEM and manufacturing through a variety of curiosity-provoking hands-on activities. Aiming to foster a multitalented workforce to help reinvigorate the advanced manufacturing industries, the lab features high-tech equipment such as 3D printers, lasers and scanners to offer hands-on instruction and training, including computer numerical control programming, computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing. “Our next generation of students and workers will be facing a world much different than in decades past, so it is vital for us to find ways to evolve and support the changing needs of tomorrow’s students as well as the workforce of the future,” said Joanne Roehm, senior director of strategy and operations at WMU-Grand Rapids. “The AMP Lab Family Open House is an exciting and engaging opportunity to connect Western Michigan University with our local community. We continue to explore ways to inspire curiosity in children, adults and everyone in between.” GRCC will join Western engineering faculty, Autocam Medical, Bricks4Kidz, West Michigan Center for Arts + Technology and JR Automation to present an array of fun-filled activities, including building programmable LEGO robots, making buttons, sitting in a Formula 1 car and watching 3D printers in action. The AMP Lab Family Open House welcomed 300 attendees in 2022. "We are proud to call the AMP Lab @ WMU our home for manufacturing education and to provide K-12 students a place to explore and learn about rewarding opportunities for future engineers, designers and skilled workers in West Michigan,” said Dr. Steven Butt, dean of Western’s College of Engineering and Applied Sciences. Occupying the first two floors of Western’s Grand Rapids regional location, the AMP Lab @ WMU is a state-of-the-art advanced manufacturing partnership laboratory where the next generation of engineers, designers and other skilled individuals can cultivate their abilities. “The AMP Lab was designed to foster collaborative learning between industry leaders, educators and students and provides a unique opportunity to create pathways to careers in manufacturing and engineering,” said John Kennedy IV, general manager of Autocam Medical.

March 28, 2023, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. --  Fernando Rivera-Calderon hit a grand slam and drove in a season-high seven runs as the Grand Rapids Community College baseball team topped Calvin University's reserves 15-9 on Tuesday. GRCC started the game with three straight hits, and led 5-0 before Calvin even batted.  The team extended the lead to 7-0, but Calvin closed the gap to just three runs after a four-run second inning. GRCC would score the next six runs enroute to a 15-9 victory. Seven GRCC players had multiple hits in the game, including three for Zacarias Salinas and Fernando Rivera-Calderon and four by Jacob Gumieny. Rivera-Calderon's grand slam was his third home run of the season. Gumieny totaled three RBI and was just a home run away from the cycle. Jeremy Marble started on the mound for the Raiders and picked up the win.  Ethan London, Riley Hawkins, Kellan Smith and Caden Van DeBurg  saw action in relief work. The baseball team is now 9-9 overall after starting the season 2-8 in a tough spring break down south. GRCC is scheduled to resume conference play next at Mid Michigan College on Thursday at 2 p.m. This story was reported by Ben Brown.